The Greatest Thing
by g3ozLizh
Summary: AU. An Aoshi-Misao & Sano-Megumi fic: intricate LOVE recTANGLE interwoven...
1. Slipping Pass

Standard disclaimers apply.

Author's Note:

            I erased the part about someone calling an ambulance. I don't think there is such a thing as an ambulance back in RK time. What do you think? In the first line, I wrote Misao MAKIMACHI instead of SHINOMORI because I mean to introduce the characters first as we know them generally. But in chapter three, I use Misao Shinomori. Hope that doesn't create any distortion, whatever.

_Loved too late_

_A reason to hate_

_But not this heart.___

_ --- g3ozLizh_

**THE GREATEST THING**

_By g3ozLizh_

Prologue

The bullet came whizzing so fast that Misao Makimachi had little time to react. But because she had set her _heart_ into it, she was able to stop it --- stop the bullet from killing the man she realized she loves.

Her whole body jerked up as the bullet penetrated deep into her flesh and she could only cry out a sharp hiss of breath; life was rapidly seeping away from her.

            For a moment, the man who the girl shielded could not move. He was too taken aback; everything happened so fast. Only when her body sagged against him that he snapped out of it and caught her. He could not believe what was happening.

            "Misao!" He crouched down on the grown slowly with his wife lying in his arms. The feel of the warm thick fluid flowing from her was enough to make him call out to her again when she didn't respond.

            Somebody called for a doctor and some aids and they would arrive any minute now… The officers around were trying to move away the curious and shocked masses from the scene.

            But he didn't heed any attention to them. All that mattered was saving the angel being taken away from him with each passing second.

            "Aoshi…" A frail hand reached out to touch the side of his face and Aoshi Shinomori was fast to clasp it into his, clinging to whatever he could hold on to.

Misao's face would have registered shock if it weren't for the fact that she really was numb all over. Only until this time did her husband respond to her touch like that…

=====

"Where are you going?"

            Sano didn't much as glance back as he hurried along the steps leading to the clinic's exit. "I've got to go to Misao! Before it's too late…"

            The lady doctor watched him go and though she wanted to demand why, she couldn't. She remained standing at the top of the stairs long after he was gone and sadly glanced over her shoulder at the dinner she had spread over the low table. She sighed dejectedly as she dragged her feet to sit alongside the it. She scanned her eyes over the dishes. _So much for these.___

She adamantly decided to wait for him though a part of her knew she would never know when he'd be back again.

            And indeed, he did not return.

=====

            Heart thudded twice the double time at how cold her hand was. He opened his eyes which he realized he had closed when he pressed her hand to his face in a symbol of silent plea not to leave him. Seeing at how glazed over and glassy her once clear cerulean eyes were, he couldn't halt the reality marching on that she was indeed slipping through his fingers.

            Aoshi wanted to hold her tightly against him and never let go. Even if he tried to conceal the one thing he was scared to come out, at the back of his mind, he knew there was no denying it any longer. Yes, he wants her to know; he wants the whole world to know but all he could think of was why? Didn't she hate her? And _he_ hate _her_? And such a foolish thing for her to do…

            He would have arrived at an answer but he heard her let a small gasp.

            Misao gulped back a sob and closed her eyes in pain. Still, he calls her Misao. She was his wife and yet she was just Misao-chan in his eyes. Never anata… Just Misao.

            _Is this how I'm going to die? Will this be last thing I'll hear him say?_

"Misao…" he repeated again, all the guards he had built over these years came crashing down; not because of her but _for_ her. "Baka, Misao. Why did you do it?" He gazed down at her and for the first time in years, a tear escaped. It ran down in haste as though wanting to get far, far away from the icy blue eyes; so long he had locked everything inside.

When she opened her eyes again, the world seemed darker somehow. Was it just because of the hurt in her heart or the physical pain? Either way, she couldn't make out Aoshi's icy blue eyes clearly anymore --- or anything for that matter. Nevertheless, she opened her mouth to speak.

"Because…" Her voice was of the softest whispers and Aoshi had to lean forward to hear it and when he did, its warm feathery brush not only made him shiver but also touched his heart.

Misao moved her mouth to carry through with what she had been meaning to tell him but darkness overcame her.

            A teardrop trickled slowly down the coldness having left the warmth of its cerulean ocean.

**To be continued…**

Author's Notes:

            laughs I'm not that cruel as to kill Misao but you'll just have to read this ficcy of mine to gradually answer those questions popping in your head right now. (What happened? Who shot the bullet? Yada, yada…)

            Yes, I'll admit that this is a sort of PWP (Plot? What plot?), but really, I have a draft implanted on my mind. I pretty much know the major scenes but the minor scenes are what I'm not so sure about. And even if they are only minor ones, they could well affect the whole thing… Even with SIX unfinished fics, I just have to write this one. This has been bugging my mind for quite some time.

            As all of you would want to know, this is a major Aoshi/Misao and Sano/Megumi story. Concentrations on S/M would have to come later though. But they will be present in the coming chapters!

            So interested to know what the plot is? Leave a review! Do email me if you want more detailed answers!

            Thanks for taking an effort to read this author's senseless ramblings!!!


	2. Honesty?

Standard disclaimers apply.

_Tears leave a trail behind_

_You are this tear_

_Nothing can change the scar you mark_

_Running down my cheeks_

_Only you can make it disappear_

_If you walk down the path again_

_And come back to me._

_--- g3ozLizh_

**THE GREATEST THING**

_By g3ozLizh_

Chapter One

Honesty?

Megumi was silent as she dabbed alcohol-dipped cotton against the thin long gash on Sano's left cheek.

            Sano hissed. Megumi continued to do the cleaning of the wound and it was after a few more seconds before she remarked.

            "Maybe then you'd think twice as to pick a fight with Aoshi." She didn't meet his eyes for she knew she would see hurt there; she had wounded his pride by saying it, knowing Sano, though hurting his ego was not her intention.

            Sano glared at her and it was not easy for her to miss as their faces were closer than what is comfortable (considering the current situation they were in). "I wasn't merely _picking _a fight with Aoshi. I had to do it to knock some sense into that no good husband of Misao," he retorted and knew he had a point there.

            But Megumi, as always, was unrelenting. "Still, you could have done it in another way," she said quietly as she covered his wound with clean gauze.

            "And what do you suggest that I should have done? Talk to him? That guy won't even listen to me!"

            Megumi stopped her work and glared at him.  "I can see why!"

            Sano glared back.

            She took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Well, I don't see him waiting for Misao to wake up. I would say that you encouraged him more to go away."

            "That's probably good! I only fought him at least to do what I have to do so that when the time comes Misao asks if I did anything to stop him, I won't have to lie!"

            "Is that the only reason why you did what you did?" Megumi asked, then after regretted it; her voice sounded more accusing than what should have only been a curious inquiry. She doesn't think she could bear the pain if he confirmed what she had been silently dreading about.

            Sano was silent and was looking over Megumi's shoulder with a faraway look on his face. After a while, his eyes resumed focus but the gaze didn't turn back to her. "No," came the simple answer.

            It was vague and Megumi didn't know if she should be relieved or be more frustrated with the way Sano was unconsciously torturing her heart.

            "Hey, I think Misao's conscious," he murmured, noticing through the open doorway to the patient's room the movement under the blanket; only the lower half of the futon could be seen.

            So, no wonder he was not looking at her. He has his eyes set on someone else.

            Megumi hastily stood up, not wanting him to see the tears that threatened to fall --- well, that is if he's still paying attention. Her voice was thick when she spoke, "Your hand and ribs should be healing properly in a week or so." She has so much to say as a doctor attending to a patient but her current condition would not allow her. Anyway, when he fought Aoshi, it was evident that he hadn't heeded her advice not to use his recuperating hand so it was unlikely that he would heed her now.

            She walked pass him to return the medical apparatuses to the cabinet by the corner of the room. She heard Sano stand up and retrieve his jacket that had been tossed aside on the floor by the doorway.

            Before he stepped out of the room, he paused, hands in pockets then turned his head to look over his shoulder. "Fox," he softly spoke. He saw her stop midway and as though she was startled to know that he would call her rather than just exit the room.

            She turned her head to the side but did not face him, only enough for him to see a portion of her face.

            Now that he has her attention, he didn't know what to say. What should be the proper way to say for her help? "Thanks," he muttered. It came out seemingly inappropriate.

            If she had been any normal doctor, thanks would have been appropriate. But she was not just any doctor. She was _his _doctor in more ways than one.

            If she had faced him, he would surely see her tear-streaked face. She nodded, unable to speak for suppressing her tears placed a lump in her throat.

            Sano turned as if to go out but then paused. He glanced back at her and saw that it took her forever to return everything back. He seemed to want to say something more but not finding the right words, he resigned to just leave her without another word.

=====

The pale and almost lifeless body of Misao lay on the clinic's futon. As he sat in his cross-legged way, Sano gently caressed the back of her hand with his thumb, all the while wanting to cry out in anguish but can't. The feeling of hatred towards the person who caused Misao so much pain --- and now this --- was just too overpowering.

            The rice paper door suddenly slid open and Sano's head immediately shot up. Upon recognizing the person, he glared at him with all the contempt he still had after their fight.

            Aoshi's eyes briefly slanted --- in what? Anger? Jealousy? --- at the sight of Sagara holding his wife's hand before resuming to their emotionless look. Whatever feeling just blazed up, it didn't show in any way anymore.

            And that made Sano all the more enraged.

            Aoshi walked calmly towards the edge of the futon though completely aware of the daggers Sano was shooting in his direction. If he had been any normal man, he would have shrunk, even just a bit, beneath that look of contempt.

            By the time he reached the bed, Sano had already placed Misao's hand back, resting it on her side. Now, both hands were clenched, half-hidden from Aoshi's view but still detectable.

            Aoshi slowly --- almost lovingly in Sano's eyes for it was something he knew Aoshi had never shown publicly until now --- kneeled down beside the futon and brought Misao's hand to his other hand where, after watching her shallow almost negligible rise of the chest, covered it with his free hand and finally, clasped it in between his.

            Sano knew this was too much for a man like Aoshi to manifest outwardly the emotions he felt inside but it was still was not enough a reason for him to give the guy the benefit of not facing his anger, not after all that he had done. His wife was lying almost without life and here he was, barely affected by it.

_            'Does he think she's just going to wake up any time soon??? Misao deserves more that that!'_ He gritted his teeth and when he couldn't hold back any longer, he stood up meaningful against the tatami floor.

            He needed to get out of the room --- fast. For his best friend's sake, he would not disturb whatever peace she found in her unconscious state. He was about to exit the door when Aoshi's voice made him stop.

            "Matte." His voice was curt and as cold as ice as expected. Sano wondered what in the world Misao's husband had to tell him.

            He answered but didn't turn around, hands shoved in his pockets. "What?"

            Sano heard the rustle of his trench coat, meaning that he had stood up. "I'm going."

            "Then go. It's not really unexpected of you considering the very few times you spare for your own wife. But this I have to say: she needs you now more than ever and even though I think she'd be better off without you, you're her only will to survive."

            Silence. Then as if Aoshi hadn't heard him, he spoke. "I'm going away. I need to face Kanryu on my own."

            Sano snapped. He whirled around and marched towards him, anger evident in his features. "You can't do that! Can't you see? She needs you, for kami-sama's sake! What the fuck… are you blind??? Is there really no warmth in that icy heart of yours even for your wife???"

            "I will be withdrawing from the Oniwabanshuu; she would not be obliged to protect me anymore."

            "What she did was more than to protect you… she did it as any loving wife would have done for her husband." For once in his life, Sano knew he was right… but however, in easier times, a world record it was, he knew it wouldn't do any benefit to him by making Aoshi change his mind.

            "Takeda Kanryu won't stop unless he has my head. She has done quite enough. As her husband, I'm doing this to protect her." Even in his years, the last statement sounded like a business proposal.

            "Protect her? Protect her, my ass! Don't you think it's a little too late for that? And now you openly say you're her husband. What good would that do to her now? With her unconscious?"

            Aoshi only regarded him with silence. Sano felt like he was talking to a wall.

_            'A wall of ice… that's what this guy is…"_ Sano inwardly shook his head in exasperation; outwardly, he ran a hand through his messy hair which he felt like pulling in frustration. What does it take to get through to this guy? "You know, I knew from the very start that you're not worthy of her and she'd be better off ---"

            "With you."

            That stopped Sano.

            Aoshi continued. "I noticed the way you care for her… more than I ever could." His face somewhat gave in to an emotion that was too quick to regress for the frustrated man to know what it was. "She'd be better off with you in her life."

            With that, Aoshi quietly exited the room. Sano didn't even bother to stop him as he would if not for the last comment.

            Sano did not know what to say and for minutes, he remained that way. He continued to gaze at Misao as if contemplating…

=====

Megumi's chest constricted as she watched Sano from the little gap on the rice paper door, going towards her office that Sano had left open. She was just _fortunate_ to hear their heated argument. The more seconds Sano stood there, staring at Misao and even though she could not see his face, she had seen more than enough instances from before to not have doubts anymore.

            As if sensing her presence and her eyes upon him, Sano's head turned and they locked gazes.

            Both knew the meaning of those gazes only that they were uncertain as to how to confront each other.

            Sano tried. "Megumi…"

            She stepped out of the door, head cast down and pressing her trembling lips together. "So this is where we stand…" she whispered. Without saying anything more and without waiting for any confirmation of some sort, she turned around and walked away.

=====

Misao sensed that she was in her subconscious state. Somewhere in her foggy brain, a scene reeled itself to life…

            _Jubilant faces shone everywhere she looked, in every nook and cranny of the garden where their wedding was to be held._

_            She tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear that got loose by the gentle breeze as she surveyed her surroundings._

_            She was seeing herself on her wedding day; what could have been the happiest moment in her life was being shattered because she was marrying for all the wrong reasons. _To the wrong man.__

_            Wrong there is ironic. Wrong because everyone seemed to be happy and in high spirits but she was not. Wrong because as she floated down the aisle towards her husband-to-be in her simple yet elegant wedding dress, his face didn't exude that expression of happy contentment and she knew that he was not eagerly waiting to take her hand as any normal groom would have done. Wrong because for her, he was the one but for him she was not. Wrong because she loves him but he doesn't love her back. Wrong because he did return her love only with this meaning: _you can have your love, I don't need it.__

_            But she couldn't quell the hope that blossomed in her heart as he stared at her with those ice blue eyes that despite the passionless and placidness in them, they warmed her in this unexplainable manner. Somehow, she drew enough determination and hope in that moment that he will return her love as he had given to her on that fateful, magical night they had shared. She will break through his shell once again; only this time, she wouldn't be alone… she knew their baby would help close the gap between them._

_            Until the time came when the determination and hope she drew from that instant weren't able to last more; she lost her faith not only in his love… she lost something much more…_

**To be continued….**

Author's Notes:

            Yeah, this is certainly going to be an AU fic because I will be manipulating some characters here to fit my story. But the setting is still the same as in the RK series… _I think_. Oh, so sorry for the indefiniteness! I'm trying to sort out some things up to now. sighs I believe I just recovered from a long, major mental block!

            Do leave a review!


	3. Pain

Standard disclaimers apply.

Author's Note:

            Please read through chapters one and two again if you've read it way before. I made revisions.

_Stop pretending_

_Reveal the person behind the mask_

_Yearning to know where your heart lies. _

_ --- g3ozLizh_

**THE GREATEST THING**

_By g3ozLizh_

Chapter Two

Pain

Misao Shinomori woke from her deep slumber and as she blinked her eyes open, slowly traveling it from side to side, the first thing she saw was a tall man's back. She uttered the foremost thought that came to her, heart going aflutter --- optimistic.

            "Aoshi?"

            The tall man twisted his body to glance at her, a bit surprised as if she had interrupted him in his thoughts, and shook his head. He then regarded her condition. "Feeling better, Misao?"

            "Sano," came the disappointed acknowledgement. _'Where is Aoshi? Is he all right? Oh, Kami-sama, please let him be unhurt ---' her_ jumbled hazy thoughts buzzed like angry bees, giving her a headache.

            "Hey, want me to get your medicine?" He made a motion to stand up but Misao called out to him.

            "Sano?" She asked quite reluctantly, slowly as if dreading the answer. "Where's Aoshi?"

            Sano stiffened halfway then sat back against the tatami floor. Slowly, he turned around to look into her expectant eyes. She looked so hopeful and very fragile at the moment, so unlike her usual self that he couldn't bear to tell her the truth just yet. Maybe when she gets better…

            _'Will she?' _A nagging thought escaped into his reasoning. _'Will she really get over all of these? It's not so much about the physical pain…'_

            Misao was now growing frantic when Sano didn't answer right away. Why was he looking at her like that? Could it be…?

            "Sano, answer me! Is he…?" She couldn't bear to finish her question but it was good that Sano butted in right away.

            "No, Aoshi is fine. But…" He began walking towards her and crouched just beside the futon. He didn't dare mention that he picked --- _No! _--- that he _fought_ Aoshi; he silently scolded Megumi for instilling that damn idea that he _picked a fight_ with the Iceman.  

            Misao never took her eyes off Sano for as if when she does, he'd escape and leave her wondering about Aoshi. She knew he was keeping something from her. A _little_ pain could not dull her sharp senses. She was an okashira after all. That is, before she'd given up her position to pursue her feelings to the man that is now her husband.

            _"Listen to yourself! That is not how an okashira behaves!" Okina admonished._

            _"Then I'd quit being the okashira if it means I couldn't be with Aoshi-sama!" she exclaimed, fire burning in her eyes in fury._

"But…?" she prompted eagerly.

            "But he has to go away…"

            "Go away? What do you mean _go away_?" Misao felt her lungs closing up, heart thudding more prominently that she was near to passing out --- but not until Sano gave her an answer.

            The tall gangster was about to say that he is not in the position to answer that question but considering that no one else was since Aoshi himself wasn't there, he explained it to his childhood friend as caringly as possible… and that was by telling the truth straight out. "Aoshi is leaving the Oniwabanshuu, he said you won't be needing to watch his back for him… and that he ---"

            He was about to say _that he left you to me_ before he caught himself; good timing Misao cut him off mid-sentence.

            "After all this time… he still thinks our marriage as part of some contract of convenience… something he is obligated to do. Granted that he was forced to marry me because he made me pregnant… still… I thought he could learn to love me… through time…What if Kanryu's men get to him? He needs me! As I need him…" As she was saying these she appeared to be going in a trance: her eyes glazed over and all her strength seemed to seep away.

            Her best friend found the need to hold her then. He carefully sat beside her and pulled her into his embrace. She didn't put her arms around him for support, rather, her arms hung at her sides and she only rested her head against his chest. The embrace seemed awkward: Misao, for her part, was just glad she could rely onto someone that however uncomfortable her position was, she didn't adjust nor complain; Sano, for his part, can't seem to completely relax, Aoshi's words echoed in his head.

            Sano looked up the opposite way Misao was looking down. He appeared to be deep in thought as he offered his childhood friend support. "Misao, what _you_ _need_ is to take care of you. Aoshi… he can fend for himself." Scenes from his fight with Aoshi flashed through his mind; his right rib still hurts.

            Misao's trembling voice sounded muffled with speaking against his chest but the intensity of her words wasn't decreased one bit. "Sano, you don't understand. If he is hurt, I hurt… if he is sad, I'm also sad…"

            The gangster wanted to shake Misao by the shoulders and tell her that that isn't how it goes. That when one is hurt, the other doesn't have to feel the hurt or there wouldn't be any way out if it at all; the pain would not go away. Instead, the other should feel anything besides the hurt for what would the other give to soothe the pain away…? Yes, one must be a fort not of pain but of hope, of love… Yet Sano didn't voice all that.

            He himself was feeling the pain.

            "I love him, Sano, whoever and whatever he is."

            And just as Sano had contemplated, the pain did not go away.

=====

The onna-sensei, all this while, had been reasoning with herself that now knowing where she and Sanosuke stood in the relationship scale, there was no need for her to invest  more time pondering over the "us" in the Rooster-head and her. Yet somehow knowing the truth was far more painful than what she had expected from the line, _truth hurts_. How about the other saying: _The truth will set you free_? In her case, the only thing set free was the anguish she was now experiencing. She doubted it if she could move forward from this; rejection was dragging her down. She stared at the sky through the open window in front of her and noted that the clouds were heavy and dark looking.

            _'No… not so much the rejection but the realization that Sano doesn't feel the same way.'_ She paused in her making Misao's meal. _'I thought I've prepared myself if ever this happens…' _she tightened her grip on the sink's edge, willing the ache out through her application of force,_ 'but I guess one could never truly ready oneself for this kind of thing.'_

After Sano had ran off to find Misao, he came back with her in his arms. Megumi now understood that it was the truth: literally and figuratively. Indeed, he did not return to her.

            She shook her head as if also shaking out the heaviness that settled in her heart. She opened her eyes only when she was confident that she had kept all the tears in. How she wished happier days would replace the past hellish weeks. She finished Misao's meal of hot miso soup and some smoked fish with rice and placed them on a tray along with some green tea; a vial of medicine had already been placed.

            Now, everything is set… but how was she to enter the patient's room without seeing Sano which surely will break her composure as she will be reminded again that he was not hers for the taking?

            _'Megumi, remember, you're ---' _

"A doctor first and woman last." She bottled all her feelings and only let those doctor instincts take over. More often than not, she wears her doctor's mask along with her smock so it wasn't that hard to hide behind them when the situation calls for it; the mask serves to conceal the fragile woman inside and gives an expression of complete control and self-reliance; the smock, to downplay any sagging of shoulders when she sometimes just wants to give in to her exhaustion, to offer warmth on cold lonely nights when she needs to be awake in attending to a patient.

            She continued to free her mind from emotions which were not a requisite in executing her work as a doctor.

            A man's deep voice echoed in her mind, _'Let it all go, Megumi-san.'_

            For a number of seconds, she was wheeled back in time when she was held captive…

            _'I will come to you. Just leave this ---'_

She snapped her eyes open, willing another part of herself which she had kept hidden up to now to be immersed in her thoughts of work until they would merely be memories she wouldn't want to look back to.

            She willed herself to go into doctor mode and be professional all day and only when midnight strikes would she take the façade off and submit to the pain, now has been increased, that never ever truly went away.

            Pushing the half-opened shoji door with her back to let herself in didn't wake up the man leaning against the wall, asleep, with his heartbroken… friend in his arms.

            The sight caught her completely off guard and for seconds --- which could have turned to minutes, she didn't know --- she stood there, frozen. Her mind was blank of anything, found herself asking the question _what am I was doing here_ and entertaining the thought of _catching the first train that would take me far, far away _from thesight that bombarded all her sense of reasoning. She could leave them, there are other doctors who would attend to Misao, she doesn't have to save everyone…

            But knowing that you could not blame love for choosing who it desires to bless with its power; she continued to do her part, as a doctor and as a friend.

            As she kneeled down to put the tray beside the futon and hesitantly pushed the blanket to cover the two, a piece of red cloth slid towards her knees.__

            A white cloth that was distinctly familiar… and nostalgic.

            The onna-sensei studied it for a moment and she was wheeled in time once again, starting from where she interrupted it moments before.

            _'Just leave this cloth and I'll find you.'_

            _'I don't understand… Why are you doing this?'_

            Sanosuke had opened an eye when he sensed that someone else was inside the room beside him and Misao and was puzzled to see Megumi staring at a piece of red cloth, folding and unfolding it, studying the edges, fingering the fabric's texture. His forehead furrowed when she covered her mouth as if stifling a cry.

            It was the same red cloth, the one she used to wrap her slender dagger. The dagger itself was with her but only now did she know that the red cloth was with Aoshi all along.

            Why was it with him? Had he intentionally kept it and… did he intentionally leave it behind for her to find?

            As if anyone would know what was going on in her head, she stole a glance at Sano's and Misao's direction and was met with dark brown eyes, just as stunned as hers was.

            Outside, the rain started to fall.

======

The former okashira of the Oniwabanshuu saw the first drops of rain hit the ground he was staring at.  It wetted his nose and while time ticked by with him standing still, the rain gradually increased its frequency and soon, Aoshi Shinomori found himself soaked to the bone.

            But it was the least of his worries. He could catch hypothermia for all he cared; the rain did not wash away any of the pain.

            Shikijo, Hyottoko, Beshimi and Hannya all died protecting him, having had helped him escape from Takeda Kanryu. Now, it seemed to be Misao's turn… No, he will not allow it; his sense of honor would not. He will confront Kanryu; he will avenge his comrades' deaths and…? And Misao will forget about him and move on; she deserves better.

            _'Like that Sagara?'_

What Sagara accused him, of him not being worthy and doing things too late, they might as well have fallen on deaf ears considering that they didn't break through to him. Maybe because he acknowledged them already from the beginning?

            He turned around in one swift motion, tipped his face upward to stare at the darkening sky, leveled his gaze and looked on ahead, took a step forward, then never turned back.

**To be continued…**

Author's Notes Ramblings:

            Aoshi, Misao, Sano and Megumi are in; Kenshin, Kaoru, Tae, Okina, Omasu and Okon will be included in the coming chapters. This is an AU fic with a sort twist from the RK series. I guess I can say that this is parallel to the RK series only with manipulated plots and characters… and this inclines itself more to the romantic side.

            Suggestions and comments are much welcome.

            Yes, I correct myself; this is a love SQUARE. Thanks to Kay-san1(ShinomoriMiyu (Yes, so far there hasn't been any love square tackling this four. Perhaps this fic would encourage others to be created?) and Mirune Keishiko (Thank you for the encouragement and I do miss your Sano & Megumi works! I haven't read your Aoshi and Megumi fic for fear that you would convince me that _them_ two belong together. Ehehehe…) for pointing that out. Aoshi loved Megumi, Megumi loves Sano, Sano loves Misao?, Misao loves Aoshi. I will soon explain how these four people got tangled in this webby love square, will even feature Aoshi and Megumi's past together and how it is that he ended up with Misao (besides getting her pregnant). Sano's presence complicated things more and Kenshin and Kaoru's relationship would be admired by the two couples, wishing that their own love life could be as blooming as K&K's.

            To onescape, yes, thank you for the opinion. I do mix up the present with the past tense so if you email me and point them all out, I'd be eternally grateful! v And I will try to be more detailed with the setting and all. Can anyone supply me with a suitable date I could base from? This happens in the same period as the RK series started. Even Jin-e will make an appearance so I guess that would give you guys a clue how Kenshin's and Kaoru's paths will cross in this fic. (Am I giving too much away?)

            This fic is not close to ending with Aoshi-Misao and Sanosuke-Megumi pairings. I might change my mind along the course of the story, who knows? :p

            Perhaps the next chapter would be lighter in angst… I wonder if that's possible…?


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